History of Furniture: Shaker

In this chapter of our ongoing History of Furniture series, let's look at a simple design element that has really withstood the test of time. You probably know about the door profile that is referred to as a Shaker style door.

But do you know where this classic style came from?

The Shakers (officially called The United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing) were a Christian sect founded in England in the 1700s that later settled in colonial America a few decades after their founding. For a Christian sect at that time, they held surprisingly progressive views: they were pacifists, they valued equality between the sexes with women taking on leadership roles within the society (reflecting their belief that God is both male and female), and they lived a communal lifestyle. They practiced celibacy--sex was forbidden for members and because of this, child-rearing was not something the Shakers often did, save for a woman who might be pregnant at the time of her admittance to the Shaker society or the adoption of homeless orphans. This meant that the Shaker population would naturally dwindle. They welcomed this idea and at this point, in 2020, there are only 2 (yes, TWO) remaining members of the Shaker society in the world.

But in their earlier days, their beliefs led them to live in austere ways that were highly functional and completely devoid of ornamentation. They practiced restraint and economy in all things. The classic Shaker cabinet door is what is called a 5-piece: 2 rails at the top and bottom, 2 side stiles, and a center panel, all without any carving or embellishment.

The Shakers were supremely adept and ingenious at inventions and interior developments to help make cleaning and organizing that much easier and faster. They installed peg rails around rooms so chairs could be stowed up and out of the way when not in use, making it easier to sweep or mop a floor. These peg rails also conveniently held other every day items like brooms and hats.

Photo by Erin Little

But the Shakers were not collectors or ones to value objects, so their interiors were often a bit bare with plenty of negative space. But this leads me to reflect on the Zen idea of negative space being full. Since the Shakers were a religious sect, their interest in this kind of austerity and minimalism certainly had its roots in the belief that negative space was not "nothing" but full of something whether that might be energy, God, or space itself. There is a kind of lovely ease and peace that can come with an uncomplicated, organized interior which allows one to reflect inward.

A bedroom in a "dwelling house" at the Canterbury Shaker Village, Canterbury, New Hampshire. Photo by Erin Little 

The peg rails held the classic cane-seated Shaker chair which came in flat and rocking versions.

The Shakers were also masters of woodworking and made beautiful, simple baskets and boxes of bent wood. These classic Shaker boxes are highly valued.

Here is a shot of the Shaker Retiring Room on display at the Metropolitan Museum in New York City, featuring various authentic Shaker objects.

Happy designing!

History of Furniture: Charles Eastlake

For this installment of The History of Furniture, we are going to look at a specific sub-genre of the  larger Victorian style category. We have previously looked at what is known as a Victorian style sofa here, as part of the Know Your Sofas series. Strictly speaking, the term "Victorian" really only applies to a style in architecture, art, clothing, and interiors in Great Britain and not the United States, since Victoria's reign, from 1837 to 1901, only covered that realm. People use the term for a certain style of architecture here in the United States for homes that are actually more aptly termed "Italianate" but that is for another post.

During Victoria's reign--which was quite long (a record broken by the current Queen Elizabeth II)--several styles came and went. Interestingly, nearly all were revivals of some sort. The decades of her rule saw a Rococo Revival, a Gothic Revival, a Renaissance Revival, a Jacobean Revival, and digressions into styles known as Orientalism (look for a future post about Olana, one of the most famous Orientalist homes in the United States, coming soon) and an Egyptian Revival.

The Victorian style's hallmark is massive, heavy, phenomenally complex and ornately carved pieces of furniture but the sub-genre we are going to look at today deliberately eschewed this heavy ornamentation for a sense that was more aligned with the cleaner lines of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement.

Originally a proponent of Jacobean and Gothic Revival, Charles Locke Eastlake was an English architect and furniture designer (1836 - 1906) who believed that furniture and decor in people's homes should be made by hand or by machine-workers who took personal pride in their work.

The Eastlake style is derived from a book he published in 1868 called HINTS ON HOUSEHOLD TASTE IN FURNITURE, UPHOLSTERY, AND OTHER DETAILS. In it, he outlined his ideas for the reformation of the typical heavy, detail-laden tastes of the Victorians in favor of a lighter, more organic approach. He used incised wood, and geometric shapes as detail.

You can see how he avoided the scrolls and curlicues of Victorian Rococo in favor of straighter lines. There is a much more rectilinear sense to the pieces themselves in addition to the details they sport. Orbs, bobbin shapes, and bead shapes rest alongside minimally incised designs of leaves, vines, and simple rosettes. In this way, the Eastlake Style can certainly be seen as an important stepping stone toward Arts and Crafts, or American Craftsman in the United States along with its distant cousin, Mission Style.

Many years ago, I had the honor of refurbishing and reupholstering an heirloom Eastlake-style chair for a client. I think the traditional Victorian crimson makes the chair look like it must have in 1898.

Happy designing!